Ruined (The Eternal Balance #1)(2)
The flash ended and left me breathless. I slammed a fist into the tree behind me. “Fuck!”
I waited until everything evened out before turning back to the building. One step toward the alley. Then another. This wasn’t going to happen. It couldn’t. Chase was leaning forward again, as the person sitting across from him did the same, giving me a perfect view of her profile.
A wave of fury rolled over me. “Motherfu—”
Samantha Merrick, who was supposed to be away at Huntington College, was about to kiss my brother.
Chapter Two
Sam
Chase Flynn flashed a lopsided grin as I slid into the booth across from him.
“You never get anything different. Always pie.” I tugged the menu from my best friend’s hands and skimmed the dessert section.
McCarthy’s was his guilty pleasure. They made the best key lime pie on the East Coast—according to Chase. The tartness of lime always turned my stomach.
I preferred excessively sweet things like chocolate mousse or strawberries slathered in homemade cream. One of the few vivid memories I had of my mother was Saturday morning strawberries and cream…
“Amen to pie, baby,” he said with an easy laugh, eyes fixed on mine. Today he was dressed in a tight-fitting forest-green T-shirt and well-worn jeans with a small hole in the left knee. On another guy, the outfit would have been weekend casual. On Chase, with his classic features and Greek god cut, it was runway chic. Although he could have donned clown shoes and a series of strategically taped paper bags and still caught the attention of every girl in the room.
Chase had lived in the house next door with his uncle and brother from the time I was six. He’d stolen my Aunt Kelly’s heart from the instant he’d arrived on the doorstep with a plate of warm brownies and that infectious charm that seemed to ooze from every pore. From that moment on, my aunt was determined to hook us up despite the fact that Chase—ironically named—was with a different girl every other day. Pass. I wasn’t interested in being anyone’s flavor of the week.
“So the movie was fun.” He flashed a sultry smile, and my pulse hastened despite the fact that I wasn’t interested in him that way. It was just the effect he had on people.
The two women at the next table were not-so-subtly eye-humping him in addition to the occasional, pointed giggle. They were older—midthirties if I had to guess—and apparently saw no shame in cougaring it up.
Chase ignored them and focused on me. “I liked the shower scene. I didn’t think it was possible for human beings to bend that way. We should test it out some time.”
He’d delivered countless lines to girls over the years, but none had ever been aimed my way. Not seriously, anyway. I laughed and leaned forward, elbows on the table. We’d played this game a thousand times before. With a wink, I joked, “And after we’re done there, we can do it doggy-style in the rain.”
Of course the waitress chose that moment to stroll over and set down two plates of hot apple pie. With a disgusted shake of her head, she turned to the table across from us to take their order. I was more tired than hungry, but Chase grabbed his fork and went to town.
“Just name the time and place, baby.” His lips tilted into a mischievous grin. Guys like this were dangerous. They knew the sway their smoldering stare held over girls, and exploited it at every turn to get what they wanted. I’d seen many a girl fall to that overpowering, swoon-worthy stare and heart-stopping grin.
I yawned and poked at the pie with my fork. Apple wasn’t my favorite, but it was better than cherry. “Yep. And after we do that, we’ll shave a llama and take it to dinner.”
He pushed his pie aside and took my hand, grin morphing into a solemn expression. “What if I said I was serious?”
His words were like a punch to the gut, stealing my breath and sending goose bumps across my skin. I didn’t know whether to laugh or jump up and run like the hounds of hell were on my ass and looking for a new chew toy. I wasn’t his type. Not even close. There were runway models and sorority house fashionistas with enough artfully applied makeup to warrant a flammable sign—and then there was me. Jeans, Tshirts, and a small tattoo of my favorite Disney character, Stitch, masterfully hidden away on my left hip. “This is a joke, right?”
Chase was smiling again, but his eyes darted over my shoulder for a moment. “Is it a bad thing if I say no?”
“It’d be a confusing thing.” I pulled my hand away and said, “For starters, you’re not known for having actual relationships, and I’m not into the one-night-stand scene.” I’d done it while away at college and wasn’t interested in repeating the experience.
He leaned back, subtly glancing around the room as though he was looking for someone. Feigning insult, he said, “You think I’m itching to make you another notch in my post?”
Distraction was one of the biggest tools in his arsenal. I’d seen it at work a thousand times. Whenever he wanted to avoid a question, he’d answer with one of his own. But there was no way I was playing into that crap. “Secondly, I’m not your type. You’re not my type, either.”
“You’re not dating anyone at the moment, correct?”
“Have I mentioned anyone lately?” The truth was, the last time I had a date, it ended with a clammy handshake and a forced smile. The time before that, the guy kissed me, and it was less like a kiss and more like an ice cube with a slimy tongue and sweaty palms.